REGION: State budget maneuver suspends open meetings law

A move to generate relief for the state budget has triggered a suspension of the requirement that local governments post meeting agendas and disclose decisions made behind closed doors.

However, cities, water districts and county governments in San Diego and Riverside counties say they intend to continue notifying the public of issues that go before local governing boards.

Such reporting has been required since 1986 by the
Ralph M. Brown Act
, the state's open meetings law.

But because of a state constitutional amendment adopted in the wake of passage of tax-slashing Proposition 13, Sacramento must reimburse local governments for their expenses and avoid creating what is commonly called an "unfunded mandate." Late last month the governor and lawmakers decided not to budget for those reimbursements.

By comparison, Sacramento has a $92 billion general fund budget for the fiscal year that began July 1.

"We think that it's an unfortunate maneuver by the state," said Murrieta City Manager Rick Dudley. "They found a number of ways to avoid paying unfunded mandates. But we believe in encouraging public participation in our meetings."

San Diego County officials also vow to continue their current practice without reimbursement.

"We have no intentions of changing anything with regards to meetings, notifications, postings, any of that ---- anything that falls under the Brown Act," said Michael Workman, a spokesman for the county.

"(The money) is not why we do it," Workman said. "We do it because it's the right thing to do."

Besides, he said, San Diego County has yet to be reimbursed one penny for the approximately $400,000 in expenses incurred assembling and posting agendas the last six years.

Similarly,
Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District
, which serves communities along Interstate 15 in Riverside County, has yet to hear back from the state on applications totaling $57,000 in recent years, said Greg Morrison, a district spokesman.

"I've got news for you: It's been an unfunded mandate for us for about the last five years," Morrison said.

San Marcos City Manager Jack Griffin said his city stopped asking for reimbursements in the early 2000s.

"That's news to me that they were supposed to be paying us for that," said San Marcos Mayor Jim Desmond. He added that his city plans no changes.

A prominent open meetings advocate isn't surprised by officials' assurances.

"You have many, many jurisdictions ---- if not most ---- assuring the local communities that they are not going to change their practices, that they are not going to stop posting agendas," said Terry Francke, cofounder and general counsel for
Californians Aware
in Sacramento, in a telephone interview Wednesday. "They would never do that."

But Francke said that's not the issue.

"The issue is whether the agendas contain the kind of meaningful descriptions that are required under the Brown Act, or whether they go back to vague labeling, particularly for controversial topics," he said.